Moments in Time: Sherlock Holmes is born
The History Channel
On May 18, 1783, the first United Empire Loyalists, known to American Patriots as Tories, arrive in what is now New Brunswick, Canada, to take refuge under the British crown. Loyalist refugees in western Quebec were given 200 acres apiece.
On May 22, 1859, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes, is born. His first Sherlock Holmes story, "A Study in Scarlet," was published in 1887. Doyle soon grew weary of his creation, killing off Holmes only to resuscitate him later due to popular demand.
On May 20, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signs the Homestead Act, which opens government-owned land to small family farmers. The act gave the head of a family 160 acres to try his hand at farming for five years. If the farmer then could prove the homestead successful, he paid an $18 filing fee and received a deed to the land.
On May 21, 1881, in Washington, D.C., humanitarians Clara Barton and Adolphus Solomons found the American National Red Cross, established to provide humanitarian aid to victims of wars and natural disasters.
On May 17, 1943, the crew of the Memphis Belle, one of a group of American bombers based in Britain, becomes the first B-17 crew to complete 25 missions over Europe and return to the United States.
On May 19, 1975, New York City's Chinatown is almost entirely shut down with shuttered stores displaying signs reading "Closed to Protest Police Brutality." The demonstration was a reaction to the New York Police Department's treatment of Peter Yew after he witnessed the police beating a Chinese teenager and attempted to intervene.
On May 16, 1980, Los Angeles Lakers point guard Earvin "Magic" Johnson steps in for injured center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and scores 42 points, leading the Lakers to a four games-to-two series win over the Philadelphia 76ers and the NBA championship.
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